Have you knit this pattern?

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Do you recognise this pattern? Did you knit it or do you know someone who did? You may know it as Patons 893, or 1085, or H283, or simply as the tree of life pattern (under which name it is still being sold today on eBay). Did you knit it, or receive it in its finished form, for a baby? How did you knit it? (that is – did you follow the centre-out construction of the pattern, or did you adapt it to be worked edging and borders inward?) What became of it after you’d knit it?

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One of the chapters in my book focuses on this pattern, whose story has an awful lot to say about the evolution of Shetland haps and shawls and which raises many interesting issues about the methods and purposes of knitting, as well as the way that commercial patterns are adapted and written, used or ignored. From its beginnings in Unst, this pattern has played a role in the lives of countless knitters and their families in many different contexts, all over the world. If you are one of those people, please do let me know!

You can contact me at haps@katedaviesdesigns.com

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Thankyou